A firm protested the rejection of its bid as nonresponsive under an invitation for bids issued by the Air Force. The bid was rejected for failure to provide a price for a certain item. The protester stated that this omission was a minor informality and contended that the Air Force could have determined the price from another portion of the bid. GAO has held that a bid must contain an unequivocal o...

DIGEST: A BIDDER'S FAILURE TO INSERT A MAXIMUM PRICE FOR A LINE ITEM REQUIRED BY THE SOLICITATION IS A MATERIAL DEVIATION THAT RENDERS THE BID NONRESPONSIVE. INDUS URGES THAT ITS FAILURE TO PROVIDE A PRICE FOR ITEM 0001 WAS A MINOR INFORMALITY OR IRREGULARITY. CONTENDS THAT THE AIR FORCE COULD HAVE DETERMINED AN AMOUNT FOR ITEM 0001 BY USING THE HOURLY RATES THAT THE FIRM HAD PROVIDED IN ANOTHER P...